Are you thinking of moving or relocating to Centereach, New York? Would you like to know what the quality of life is like living in Centereach?
Giovanna reports in this review:
Weather | | How much crime? | | What are the neighborhoods like? | | What are the people like? | The air feels very stagnant and stuffy compared to other North Shore towns. Then again, Centereach doesn't have the good fortune of being located right by the shore. There's also a lot of traffic, so that definitely factors into how the air feels because many people "pass through" the town on their commute. The town's topography (or lack thereof) is flat in comparison to the rest of the glacier-scraped North Shore that has the hills to prove it. Its relative flatness doesn't make it much of a micro-climate, except that the wind usually isn't as strong and the rain isn't as heavy. However, one must take into account that it's still on land that is surrounded by water and rains more than the rest of the country. When hurricanes strike Long Island, they strike with extravagant fury, although the South Shore seems to get the brunt of it. If you want to move to Long Island, but fear the threat of hurricanes or ferocious tropical storms, it's in your best interest to move to a more land-locked location like this one. | | Centereach has a lot of crime. First and foremost, Centereach is rife with crime. Theft and break-ins are commonplace, but in the usual Suffolk police fashion, they do nothing about it. (I've seen the police refuse to take action more times than I can begin to count.) Muggings often go unreported because of this reason. Like the rest of Long Island, there is a lot of drug-dealing. (Not marijuana; I'm talking about heroin and crack. Long Island is facing a heroin epidemic that is so immense, even towns that were perfectly safe now have streets filled with junkies who are desperate enough to resort to crime. Here, you see crackheads walking around the street and syringes strewn about the place. The amount of clothes and camping gear that my friends and I have run into when exploring the wooded areas lead me to believe that many of the homeless drug addicts camp out there. (Obviously, not all homeless people are addicted to drugs and aren't necessarily dangerous.) Oh, and street-walking prostitutes loiter outside of many businesses. | | I mean, if you walk out at night, the odds that you'll be alright are in your favor. I lived Stanley Drive, just off of Mark Tree Road by the Party City and Walmart. That specific neighborhood was alright, but only because families lived on the block and it seemed like everyone was trying their best to pretend that our section was isolated from the rest of Centereach. Although I lived in a basement apartment, all of the other houses within this four block radius were new and quite nice. The wood patch by Stanley Drive is perfectly safe, though. Well, it was during the many nights we slept there, but in other woodsy areas, we saw evidence of homeless camps and hard drug use. Like I said, I know that not all homeless people are drug addicts, but if you should be wandering by these areas at night, there's an increased chance of getting attacked. The rest of Centereach is run-down and less safe. | | In the area where I lived, it seemed to be some kind of refurbished or new development-like scheme, so it attracted middle class families with children as well as middle-aged and old(er) people. Apparently, all of the renovation and construction has attracted more upper-middle class people. The climb in the economic bracket hasn't entirely changed the shenanigans of what goes on here and I've noticed that a lot of them have security systems installed. Most of the people here are white, although I've heard older people refer to this town as "Center Rico" before. I mean, I checked out the racial demographics and I definitely felt like there were more hispanics than they indicated, but not enough for to deserve that name. (And let's face it - those people say it with a racist, negative connotation to emphasize that Centereach isn't the best town.) Move here if you're not deterred by this. | Downtown Area | | Restaurants | | Schools | | Single life | Utopia is the gem of Centereach! It's an awesome "alternative" store. There's also a Target (always great) and a Best Buy. There is also this pathetic excuse for a mall (across from Walmart) that my friends and I used to walk through just so we could laugh at it. It was a little, vacant building with desolate hallways, a gym with weird illustrated demonstrations on its walls to depict the exercises, and another random store. There's also a pet store and Joanne's (a craft store) if that's what you're into. | | Aside from Taco Bell, the haunted Pizza Hut is a close econd! (Like the track, it is also confirmed to be haunted by paranormal investigators.) I love the Istanbul Cafe and Meson Ole as well. The Diner (right by the "Unique Kitchenette" store or whatever) is adequate. If you're feeling particularly gluttonous, go to the Golden Buffet in the "mall" near the Walmart. Across the street from the buffet is an excellent greek restaurant. | | I knew kids that went to Centereach High School. Academically and socially, they said that it was poor quality. On the bright side, the track is rumored to be haunted! Paranormal investigations support this claim. | | There aren't a lot of single people here. I met quite a few prospects at the Desert Rose Hookah Lounge. | Noise | | town comparison vs. | | Best hospital | | Tourist attractions | Middle Country Road cuts right through the middle of Centereach. It's a really busy road, so it generates a lot of noise. That, and occasionally, people shout in the street. | | If you can swing it, I can tell you firsthand that St. James is much safer. It costs more, but it's much more secure and less scrubby than Centereach. At least there are cute little stores there and the town retains some kind of dignity. Yeah, there are some good places in Centereach, but not that many. Selden is a step above Centereach in terms of the quality of its neighborhoods and businesses. I feel like the road conditions, public safety, and public utilities (such as parks) in Selden make its inhabitants feel more secure. However, when I lived there, I lived right by a playground that appeared innocuous, but regularly had shady drug deals going down and a lingering, sweet, chemical smell that was definitely not marijuana. Either way, Centereach is generally inferior to both of these towns. | | Centereach is near Stony Brook Hospital. It's very renowned and known for its good practices. | | The best places are Utopia, the haunted places, the hookah lounge, Target, and the centereach mall for laughs. Meson Ole is awesome and the Magic Isle Aquarium is also pretty fascinating. | General comments | | | | | | | I'm not saying that it's Compton, but understand that you DO run a higher risk of falling prey to crime if you live here. Most of the time, it's alright, but when I lived here, crime always seemed to be a ubiquitous part of the environment. Yeah, we'd walk around at night and stuff, but there was always the pretense of maybe getting mugged or something. It's a pretty uneventful place. Most of the businesses aren't very outstanding, although they must be doing business, given that their parking lot is usually packed and it's a busy area. Outside of Pathmark's gotten a bit better, but it's still pretty sketchy, as is the laundromat. Long story short, Centereach is sketchy. | | | | | | |
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